


Falling

by JenJo



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: For the most part, M/M, MCU compliant, Rhodey Birthday Week 2018, Rhodey's Birthday, but its on its way, but with certain liberties taken, established in the future, it fits within the mcu, the ship is not established by the end of the fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-07
Updated: 2018-10-07
Packaged: 2019-07-27 09:06:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16215869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JenJo/pseuds/JenJo
Summary: My guardian angel, is the man who broke my heart.





	Falling

**Author's Note:**

  * For [tisfan](https://archiveofourown.org/users/tisfan/gifts).



> This fic got a lot bigger than I expected.  
> Mostly though, I have plans for the future parts of this fic.  
> Three parts, each looking more than 20K.  
> I figure it'll be my NaNo project to clean them all up.  
> But! I needed to post something for the amazing tisfan, so I pulled together a part from the first part of the fic.   
> I hope you like it.
> 
> Notes on canon:  
> \- this is a mcu compliant fic, except:  
>  \- Rhodey & Sam are closer in age  
>  \- Rhodey was involved in the FALCON program  
>  \- Carol, Rhodey, & Tony are best friends

_ Falling.  _

_ Display going blank. _

_ Falling. _

_ Gravity at 9.8 metres per second.  _

_ I wasn’t that high up.  _

_ The armour is broken. _

_ It will be my coffin. _

_ I can’t see. _

_ My final view will be the sky, the sky I glimpsed before the display broke. _

_ Falling. _

_ So much left. _

_ Falling. _

_ I- _

 

His internal monologue was broken as he landed, not on the ground, not crumpled in a heap as he had been waiting for.

No, he had been caught.

Scratching at the seams of the helmet, he was barely able to open his eyes to see what was happening.

He dragged them open as the helmet’s faceplate was ripped off, the sun warming his face.

As well as a face which had, once upon a time, meant everything to him.

“Always said I’d catch you.”

His eyes fell closed, one last thought as he drifted into unconsciousness.

_ My guardian angel, is the man who broke my heart. _

 

* * *

 

“I should be more surprised, but I’m not.”

Sam looked up from unpacking, to see a man walk into the room, holding a dry cleaning bag over one shoulder, and a suitcase in the other hand.  _ A fellow Airman, probably.  _  “Roommates?”

“For the next three years, yes.”

“And who said racism is dead.” Standing straighter, Sam offered a hand. “Sam. Thought I’d get the obvious out of the way.”

“James,” the other man shook Sam’s hand, smiling at his words. “Never underestimate the power of chance.”

“You saying this isn’t on purpose?”

“I’m saying, it’s probably better to assume so.” James let go of Sam’s hand, “The walls have ears, more so here than anywhere else.”

_ Move to a safe topic of conversation, Wilson _ . “Okay, uh, first day?”

James, who had been unpacking, turned around and gave Sam a funny look.

“What? Something I said?”

James shook his head. “Uh, not my first day.”

“Oh…” Sam thought this over a bit. “Then why have they put you in a room with me?”

“I believe the official wording was…” James stood up straighter, shoulders back, as though reciting the words of a superior officer. “ _ This was the only room left, Rhodes. We’ll endeavour to find you more suitable accommodation, Rhodes. Don’t hold your breath, Rhodes. Keep smiling, Rhodes _ .”

Sam wasn’t sure whether to laugh or not, until James gave him a smile. “You can laugh, my General Watts impression usually gets a laugh, even from the man himself.”

Sam felt free to laugh then. “I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting the man, but I did get flashbacks to every enlisted man I’ve met so far.”

James looked uncomfortable for a moment, but before Sam could think on it anymore, James’s pager beeped.

“Yeah, I’m late for something, usually am,” James muttered, grabbing the dry cleaning bag. “I’ll change there. Nice to meet you, Sam,” he said this last part out loud, giving Sam what looked to be a genuine smile. “Don’t let the system get you down on your first day.”

“Thanks,” Sam gave a small wave, watching James walk out the door.

It wasn’t until later, when he’d finished unpacking everything and was reading a book, that he realised he’d never told James that it was  _ his  _ first day.

 

* * *

 

 

Sam didn’t see much of James for the first month of training.

The man was awake before Sam,  _ and I wake up at four am _ , and didn’t go to sleep until after Sam,  _ usually by ten pm. _ If James slept, Sam didn’t see it.

James wasn’t in the mess hall when Sam ate, he wasn’t  _ anywhere _ , as far as Sam could tell.

It was like rooming with a ghost.

“You should be glad,” Liam, who was spotting Sam, said in response to this. “My roommate,” Liam paused, looking around the room for signs of his roommate. “ _ My  _ roommate is the opposite of a ghost.”

“So…” Sam paused, pushing out another rep, “a human?”

“Oh, ha, ha, Wilson,” Liam rolled his eyes, guiding the bar back to it’s holders. “Time to swap. Seriously though, the guy leaves stuff  _ everywhere _ . I would complain, but….”

“Yeah,” Sam sighed; a month was more than enough time to figure out that it’s easier to suffer through minor inconveniences, than try to take them to anyone in charge.

“The real question, is… is he a looker?”

Sam almost missed the weight, and it almost caught Liam on the head. “What?”

Liam laughed up at him, shaking his head. “Come on, Wilson. My roommate, he’s ugly as all hell. Nothing wrong with admiring the human form, am I right? So, your roommate. A looker?”

“I haven’t really thought about it,” Sam lied.

Because he  _ had  _ thought about it. A lot. 

James  _ was  _ a looker, to use Liam’s words. Beyond their conversation on the first day, Sam had only caught glimpses of James. They certainly hadn’t had a conversation since. 

And yet,  _ and yet _ , James had certainly gained himself a place in Sam’s thoughts.

Which was stupid. Sam had learned long ago, to not obsess over someone you didn’t know.

It was never worth it.

_ You need  _ friendship  _ first, Sam, otherwise you’re going to get hurt. Again. _

“Earth to Wilson!”

Sam shook his head, looking down to see Liam smirking up at him.   
“What?” Sam asked as he guided down the bar.

Liam shrugged as much as he could against the bench, before grabbing the bar. “Your roommate must be  _ quite  _ the looker.”

_ If only you knew,  _ Sam thought to himself.  _ If only you knew. _

 

* * *

 

“You know, I still don’t think you have a roommate.”

Sam sighed as he closed the door behind himself, turning to see Riley standing in the middle of the room, looking at James’s side in thought.

“You can clearly see a second bed, and a second set of clothes. You think I need that many clothes?”

“Maybe?” Riley shrugged, grabbing a chair and sitting on it. “When was the last time you  _ saw  _ your mysterious roommate, anyway?”

Sam considered the question as he got out two cans of soda, tossing one to Riley before taking a seat on his bed. “I don’t know... three months?”

Riley counted in his head as he took a drink. “So you haven’t seen him since move in day?”

“Guess not.”

“Man, you are so lucky to have a room to yourself!”

“You have a troublesome one?”

“He  _ snores _ .” Riley visibly shudders. “Loudly. Don’t think I’ve slept through the night since I got here.”

“Well, that’s-”

Sam’s response was cut off when the door to the room opened, and in walked James. 

“Don’t mind me, just need to grab something,” James said, as though he regularly walked into this room while Sam was in there.

Riley jumped up to stand at attention.

“Riley, what are you-” Sam started at the same time Riley asked, “Why aren’t you standing at attention?”

“Why would I?”

“That’s Second Lieutenant Rhodes.”

Sam blinked, uncomprehending. “What?”

James, having picked up a briefcase, waved a hand at Riley. “At ease, don’t worry about formalities in here. I’m never around anyway.”

“Yes, sir,” Riley automatically responded.

Sam sat staring up at James, comprehension dawning.

“Second Lieutenant Rhodes, as in the man who wiped all the records on his first run of the training course.”

“That would be me, yes,” James smiled. “Sorry I haven’t been around much, I’m a busy man.”

“I’m sure you are. I just assumed you were a recruit like me.”

“I was, until they realised what I could do.” James shrugged, like this was no big deal. “I’d love to stay and chat, but I am late to a meeting.”

“I am such a fan,” Sam blurted out, as James walked to the door.

James turned to look over his shoulder, and had a smirk on his face. “We’ll talk later Sam. Nice to meet you, Sam’s friend.”

“Riley,” Riley said, as much in disbelief as Sam was.

“Riley,” James nodded, as though committing the name to memory. “Sam.”

And with that, he left the room.

Riley dropped down to sit next to Sam, both of them staring into space.

“My roommate is  _ the  _ Rhodes?”

“Your roommate was  _ flirting  _ with you?”

Sam blinked, turning a wild look on Riley. “What? No? What?”

Riley put a hand on Sam’s shoulder, patting it consolingly. “Oh, you have it bad.”

“Please never speak of this again,” Sam muttered, covering his face with his hands.

“I am such a fan!” Riley said, in a poor imitation of Sam’s voice.

Sam merely groaned in embarrassment, which made Riley laugh even more.

 

* * *

 

“Rhodey, you are  _ not  _ flirting with your roommate, are you?”

James levelled a look at Carol, which told her just how much he appreciated her comment. “Jealous, are we?”

“Me, no,” Carol shook her head, before pointing into the corner. “Though he might be.”

“I’m not jealous!” Tony called from his workbench, where he was working on some last-minute adjustments for his presentation tomorrow. “Me and Rhodey agreed, we’re better off as friends!”

“We never dated,” James sighed, shaking his head.

“Though I will miss the sex!”

“You are going to get me thrown out of the Air Force!”

“Nah,” Tony stood up, walking over to join the others. “They’d never kick you out, so long as you’re friends with me. They value me too much.”

“Are you saying,” Carol pointed at James with her soda can. “That the Air Force is keeping Rhodey around, so that  _ you  _ stay around?”

“That’s why you’re my favourite, Danvers.” Tony smiled, patting James on the shoulder and sitting beside him on the couch. “You’re smart.”

“And here I thought it was my superb flying skills that kept me in a job,” James muttered.

“Well, that too,” Tony shrugged. “How am I meant to know what they’re thinking. Thank you for getting the briefcase, by the way. I could not have made the modifications without it.”

“I assumed you needed the blueprints,” James picked up the briefcase, or what was left of it; Tony had taken off the handle, and the hinges. “Not the briefcase itself.”

“All the blueprints are in here, Rhodey,” Tony pointed to his head, flashing an award winning smile at James.  _ I still can’t believe he won an  _ award  _ for his  _ smile _ , of all things.  _ “Never lose them.”

“Now, if only he remembered appointments as well as he remembered blueprints,” Carol sighed, shaking her head. “He was meant to give  _ me  _ some upgrades today, let me push that bird faster.”

“You already own every record, Danvers, what more do you need from me?”

“To go even faster, obviously.”

James was glad to let his friends’ conversation fade into the background. The truth was, he hadn’t realised he’d been flirting with his roommate. It had just felt natural.

He rarely saw Sam; that room was more of a storage facility than an actual room. Tony owned an apartment just off base, and James made use of it. 

He’d only somewhat lied to Sam and Riley; James knew they were the same age. But having your Masters by twenty two, and being best friends with Tony Stark, opened up a lot of doors that would otherwise be closed to anyone. 

This time next year, James would be flying combat missions, potentially as a leader.

Sometimes, he’d wonder if he was worth all the preferential treatment. Sometimes, he’d question if he should be here. But then he’d be up in the air, and showing everyone he was  _ better  _ than everyone else, and in those moments, he knew he was where he was meant to be.

There was nowhere else he’d rather be.

He wasn’t one to normally subscribe to the idea that everyone was half of a soul, and that you had to find your other half to be whole again. 

But sometimes, lying alone in his bed, he’d wonder. 

Sure, he engaged in casual hookups when he had the chance, but being in the Air Force did not lend itself to stable, long term relationships.

In fact, his longest relationship was with his plane. 

So maybe he  _ had  _ been flirting with Sam. It didn’t have to mean anything. 

Besides, it wasn’t like they saw much of each other. A little flirting never hurt anyone.

James definitely wasn’t paying attention to his two friends, because he did not register that they were talking about  _ him _ .

“Look at him, he’s got it bad.”

“What can he do? It’s not like either of them have time for a relationship.”

“A one night stand never hurt anyone.”

“But if it goes wrong, they still have to see each other. Not everyone can just move to the other side of the country to avoid their one night stand, Tony.”

“How do you people even live?”

“With great difficulty, I can assure you.”

 

* * *

 

“We want you to teach a squad.”

“Teach, sir?”

“Yes, teach.” General Watts pushed forward a briefing packet, which James briefly looked down at. “You’ll be in charge of forty seven pilots, ranging in experience from beginner to ten years.”

“Why me, sir?”

“Because you’re our second best pilot.” General Watts allowed a smile on his face. “And Danvers said no.”

“Of course she did.”

“She has other assignments. Unfortunately, she’s off to NASA.”

“NASA?”

“I didn’t get told, I didn’t ask. NASA wanted her, NASA got her.” General Watts sat back in his chair, looking at James. “I would’ve asked you first, anyway. She may be the better pilot, but you’re the better teacher. Danvers lacks something all teachers need.”

“What’s that, sir?”

“Patience.”

James allowed a smile at that. “I’ve never known her to be patient.”

“Exactly.Now, this assignment is top level, Rhodes. You have every permission to cut people from it, if you believe them to be unqualified for the position.”

“Sir, what  _ is  _ the program?”

“It’s a two-fold program, Second Lieutenant. Take a look at the packet.”

James opened the packet, his eyes widening as he read through it.

_ This is probably the most bizarre program I’ve ever seen. _

 

* * *

 

“You are part of a two-fold program,” James said, standing at the front of a lecture hall. In front of him were the forty seven pilots, all with no idea what they were in for. “The forty seven of you have been hand chosen by a committee of Generals, looking for the best the military has to offer. Anyone who doesn’t show their best, will be cut from the program. We only want the best.”

“Then shouldn’t we have the best instructor?” Someone called from the back.

James pasted on his best bland smile, holding his hands behind his back, the picture of calm. “The committee could have chosen any pilot in the world to be your instructor. They chose me. My record speaks for itself. If you have a problem with taking instruction from me, then I trust you can find the door.”

When no one stood up, James allowed a small smile to show. “Welcome to the FALCON program.”

 

* * *

 

Three months later, James still thought the FALCON program was one of the most bizarre ideas he’d ever heard. 

_ And to think Tony had  _ nothing  _ to do with it. _

The idea of putting jet packs with that much power onto a person, and then have that person  _ flying into combat _ , was truly bizarre.

But the program had been approved, and by all accounts, was proceeding ahead of schedule.

His forty seven pilots had been reduced to forty; three quit after a week, two were reassigned, and two were removed by James for “disciplinary issues”.

He had no room for racists on an elite squad.

James’s job had been to train the pilots who would be taking the FALCONs, as they were referred to, into combat, then picking them up again. It required precision flying, and a whole lot of skill.

The FALCONs might be the ones jumping into combat, but the pilots were the ones who brought them home again.

There was a level of trust there, one that could not be diminished.

Thus, today’s objectives.

There was no flying today, there were no drills. Today was about the pilots and the FALCONs meeting each other, bonding with each other, building the levels of trust.

The pilots had been training on another base; James didn’t even know the names of the FALCONs. It was a completely new experience, but he had every faith in the pilots that he had trained. 

Today was informal; no uniforms, no ranks. Just a bunch of people having a drink, making friends.

Which didn’t explain why James was standing by himself, watching everyone around him. 

Or maybe it did;  _ he  _ wasn’t here to make friends. He was here to make sure his pilots didn’t step out of line.

“You know, it’s weird without a roommate.”

James was shaken out of his thoughts, turning to the side to find Sam standing there, looking out over the crowd. “Sam?”

“Everyone complains about their roommates, but I can’t.” Sam shrugged a shoulder, turning a smile on James. “Mine is perfect.”

“I’ve been away for three months. You barely saw me before that.”

“Exactly.”

_ It’s been three months, let’s see if I can flirt a bit with this man.  _ “You know, if you’re lonely, I  _ could  _ arrange for you to get a permanent roommate.”

“Oh?” 

Sam seemed to have picked up on the flirting; James couldn’t help but add, “I got someone who snores  _ all  _ night, if you want him.”

“If he looks like you,” here Sam looked his fill, very obviously looking over James’s body, “I think I could manage.”

“Well then, I might have another roommate in mind.”

“I’m all ears.”

“I’m not sure if he snores,” James continued with the flirting, “but I hear he can be  _ real  _ clingy. Definitely an octopus in bed.”

“I hear they’re flexible. I like that in a partner.”

“Well,” James looked over the room, where his pilots seemed to be behaving themselves. “I don’t technically need to be here. If you like, I could introduce you to this octopus.”

“I could slip away for a bit,” Sam nodded. “I wouldn’t mind meeting this man. He sounds perfect.”

“Oh, he’s far from it,” James laughed, leading Sam out of the room. “But he might be perfect for you.”

_ I will never let Tony or Carol know that I said that _ , James thought as he walked out of the room, Sam right behind me.  _ They’ll never let me hear the end of it.  _

**Author's Note:**

> Fade to black/ insert your own sex scene.  
> Because that's where this fic would end, if I were any good at writing them.  
> So I leave it to your imaginations, dear readers.   
> Thank you for reading  
> :)


End file.
